A group of German students is spending its last days in Lawrence, and they’ve learned important things about American culture.

“We like to say ‘dude,’ ” said Daneil Preiss, 17. “We’ve got to take that to Germany.”

Between Lawrence High and Free State, 15 students were integrated into the life of an American teenager for five weeks. All are from Eutin, Lawrence’s sister city in Germany. The hospitable host families helped the transition.

“I love the people here,” said Helena Jemssen, 16, who spent her time at Lawrence High. “They are very nice and very open.”

Each teenager is staying with the family of a student who has already visited Germany in the exchange program.

The students are in their 11th year in German school, meaning they have two years left before graduation. They have been learning English since fourth grade.

The group is soaking in as much as they can during their stay.

“We went shopping, of course,” said Jannik Garwanski, 16. “We went to Topeka, but Lawrence is much prettier than Topeka.”

Niklas Beinlich said the hamburgers at Five Guys Burgers and Fries are the best he’s ever had.

“I like the food,” he said. “It’s very fat, but it’s very good.”

But not everything is foreign. Preiss says he thinks the cultures are fairly similar.

“A lot of things from America come over to Germany, like McDonald’s and Burger King. We’ve got all that stuff, too,” he said. But the blending of cultures from around the world was new. “It’s nice to see here in America that different cultures from everywhere are coming together. It’s interesting to see that.”

Students leave for Chicago on Monday and will spend time in the Windy City until Thursday, when they return to Eutin.